If it is convicted of the crimes that it is accused in the complaint about the 2022 coup plot, () may receive a sentence of 43 years in prison, as well as aggravating factors that can increase this time.
The first class of the (Supreme Federal Court) becomes defendants the former president and seven others pointed out by (Attorney General’s Office) as members of the central nucleus who tried to prevent President Lula (PT) inauguration after the last presidential election.
Bolsonaro is accused of the crimes of leading; attempted violent abolition of the Democratic Rule of Law; coup of state; Damage qualified by violence and serious threat against public assets and deterioration of listed assets.
If sentenced to the maximum penalties, the longest conviction would come for the crime of armed criminal organization, which may add 17 years with the circumstances described by the complaint (use of firearms and participation of civil servants).
See below for the penalties of the crimes for which Bolsonaro is reported:
- Criminal Organization: 3 to 8 imprisonment, increased to 17 years;
- Attempted violent abolition of the Democratic Rule of Law: 4 to 8 years;
- Coup d’etat: 4 to 12 years;
- Damage qualified by violence and serious threat against public property: 6 months to 3 years;
- DECLARED OF HERITAGE TYPED: imprisonment from 1 to 3 years.
These sanctions may still add aggravating as use of violence.
Any condemnation of the maximum penalties would not mean that Bolsonaro would spend all the time arrested, as the penalty compliance limit in Brazil is 30 years, and there is still the right to regime progression in the penitentiary system.
The former president has already been convicted by the TSE for attacks and lies about the electoral system and is the target of other other investigations in the Supreme Court. At this time, he cannot compete at least until 2030.
In the event of a condemnatory criminal sentence around a coup plan, the former president is probably also ineligible longer, due to the Clean Record Law.
This is because, by the norm, convicted are ineligible since the conviction by a collegiate body to eight years after the sentence.
In Tuesday’s trial, the former president’s defense questioned aspects of the complaint already removed by the Supreme, such as the trial for the first class, and denied that he led an attempt to coup.
In oral support at the court, lawyer Celso Vilardi stated that he from the command of the Armed Forces.
“It was the president who determined the transition, that they [chefes das Forças] meet the Minister of Defense [José Mucio] that would assume in January. It is not possible to say that it is compatible with an attempt to coup and the use of military command when the President of the Republic authorizes the transmission of military power in December, “he said, citing Mucio’s interview on TV Cultura’s Roda Viva program.
If the complaint is accepted by the first class, the case will be under the rapporteur of Moraes, until the trial that will decide for the conviction or acquittal of the accused.
The complaint
PGR’s complaint about the coup plot says Bolsonaro led the attempted coup.
The prosecution says that he adopted a rupture tone of institutional normality from 2021, with pronouncements in which he was unhappy with the decisions of higher courts and the electronic ballot boxes.
This climb, says the prosecutor, “gained more remarkable boost” when Lula became eligible again after the cancellations of his criminal convictions.
During the second round of the 2022 elections, says the PGR, “the organization has again put its plan to prolong the leader’s permanence in power.”
It is mentioned that they were unlawfully mobilized security apparatuses at the Ministry of Justice to map the places where Lula had a more expressive vote in the first round and that the Federal Highway Police were led to perform operations in these places to make voters access to voting places.
After the elections, the PGR states that “Minuts of acts of formalization of the constitutional order were designed”, a reference to the so -called “minutes of the coup”.
“The President of the Republic at the time came to present one of them, which was considering the arrest of two ministers of the Federal Supreme Court and the president of the Federal Senate. Further, in a review, concentrated the action of the person of the president of the Superior Electoral Court,” the complaint says.
After the attempts were frustrated and Lula took office, the group saw the January 8 demonstration as “the last hope of the organization.” “Its members exchanged messages, pointing out that they were still waiting for good news.”
